St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-06-25
McConneii's Severe Structures Upon
The Press For its Reports on Im-
prisened Fargo Cyprians.
He Intinatss That Herman, the 0kolOns
States Man, Wrote the Original
Sensational Article,
End Says That Every Reporter Sending
it Out Knew il 10 be Deliberate and
Malicious Falsehood.
If What Was Said We're True the Blame
Would Not Rest Wholly Upon
the Sheriff.
Special correspondents of the Globe

Special Correspondence of the Globe
FARGO. June 23.-The cases of the
Ttsseiled doves" having created lively
interest, the following court literature
is given: Theresa st. John, having
plead guilty To the charge of keeping a
house of ill-fame. the court imposed the
following sentence: 1.-The sentence of
the court is that you be imprisoned in
the county Jail for the period of thirty
days from to-day &C Il o'clock, noon, and
that you pay II fine OF 81 and the costs
of this proseauEon.' The court then
proceeded To say: This gives me the
occasion To speak of some matters that
j might otherwise have been silent in
regard TO. The Argus, the ST. Paul Pho
neer Press, the s.. Paul GLoSE and the
Minneapolis Tribune of the 10th INST,
Thursday last, contained articles, which
not only reelected upon the officers of
the court, but upon the treatment of the
prisoners. The ST. Paul GI.oBE started
out with sympathy for HarlotS;' the st.
Paul Pioneer Press Fargo Soiled
Doves; the Minneapolis Tribune by
saying that Fargo WAS getting mad"
Getting mad Tor WHAT Among other
things il charges tAat four women have
been kept in osle cell, and confined in
small cells. IL is said that four are
confined in small cells, and III the day
time have Ro other Freedom onlya small
corridor: taaS the food is unsatisfactory
and unwholeSome, and that the jail is
literally alive with vermin.' The ar
ticle in the Argus Is To the same effect.
] do not charge it lis emanaung from
the Argus, but from those papers that
only currently report it. Ii such were
no 60 lao nf
gross inhumanity for me to sentence
you to jail. But l do not believe it is
true. The ones that wrote that article
did not believe it to be true. Every re-
porter who published or wrote that or
sent it to the Pioneer Press, knew that
it was Il
DELIBERATE FALSEHoOD
from beginning to end. The Argus
knew it when it published it. W. III.
Herman, the notorious Okolona states
man, came up here as the representative
of the Argus. as he stated, for the pur-
pose of writing up Il sensational article,
and asked me TO use my influence with
the iailer for the purpose of getting an
interview with the inmates. l immedi-
ately told the sheriff of that and di-
rected him not to let any reporter of the
Argus go into the jail. | desire you to
say now publicly, here in the court
room, that the madamS who have been
confined heretofore pleaded guilty, and
they were not sentenced upon eX parte
statement. Mr.. Pollock, the district at
torney, did not know what the sentence
would be until after it was pronounced,
and | never had word with Mr.
Benton in my life upon the question of
what is termed the social evil" l did
not know whether he was in favor of
fines or imprisonment. l did not be-
iieye that he and other good citizens
were in favor of the enforcement of the
law If the jail is full of vermin, and if
the sheriff is giving unsatisfactory food
to the prisoners, who is TO blame? Is
the sheriff alone TO blame? Section $50
of Criminal Procedure says that the
county commissioners shall look after
these matters Section $40 says that the
grand jury shall look after these mat
tiers, and, above all, the statute says that
the judge of this court shall prescribe
rules to regulate the jail, as to the clean
illness of prisoners, the classification of
prisoners. their beds, clothing, employ
ment, medical and surgical aid, when
necessary, temperance, instruction, the
supplying of each prisoner
WITH 4 BIBLE,
the intercourse between prisoners, their
counsel and other persons. and the pun
the rules of the prison, and such other
regulations as the said judge may deem
necessary to promote the welfare of said
prisoners. Ii there is any fault to be
found because persons have not been
permitted to interview these inmates of
the jail it is with myself / positively
directed the sheriff not to allow it, and
because Of that Il great howl is raised in
the community here, not for their pun
1Shment. but OF sympathy, as though
they were innocent, and as though Mr.
Pollock, the district attorney, and Mr..
Benton, the sheriff of this county, had
committed some terrible outrage against
justice, when they were simply carrying
out what the law says it is in my power
to do. The law says L may direct I'M
prisOnment in the county Jail. / so
directed it, and when they are
carrying out that sentence they
are simply carrying out the
mandates of the law. If, perchance,
twelve jurors GO over with the court, as
they did yesterday afternoon, and ask
the prisoners questions as to their treat
ment, and they reply that if there are
any reports of their bad treatment they
must come from the outSide-that they
certainly do not come from the inside,
then it is whispered that because Mr.
Benton, exercising his prerogative as
sheriff, has summoned these jurors,
they are not competent to give testi-
mony. Upon the contrary, there has
not been a special petit juror summoned
by the sheriff at this term of court.
They have all been drawn from the box
regularly and are now i'll attendance
here. They went over not only with
the court, but with other officers and cit
liens of the city.
THE RESPONSIBILITY
is not with the officers of the court, and
there is no need of the Argus or any
citizen charging Mr.. Benton or Mr.. Pol
lock with the prostitution of their office.
They are simply carrying out the letter
of the law, and that is that these ladies
be confined in the jail for thirty days,
and when they are confined it means
that they are to be treated as prisoners
treated as men are treated-treated as
other prisoners are treated, and they
must expect only such treatment as
prisoners receive. The law says that
/ shall look into this matter, and to per-
SONS who wish to attack the district at
torney and the sheriff, and think they
are screening me, say, whether they
be friend or foe, that stand here as the
representative of this court and
| do not propose that persons, simply
because they profess to be friends of
mine, shall thus cOyertly attack me in
the discharge of my duty. 1t is hard for
persons i'll the discharge of official duty
to have criticism cast upon their actions,
but when they have a consciousness
that what they have done has been with
out malice and i'll an attempt to uphold
the laws, do not know that such officer
ought to complain. Of course criticisms
will be made upon officers Criticisms
are made upon the actions and course of
public officers every day. 1t is enough
for the court to bear to be stabbed by the
Co I,Eif To- -